Updates, advisories and surprises

(4:38 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - LinkedIn Corp.
LNKD, -10.52%
on Thursday reported a fourth-quarter profit of $3.78 million, or 3 cents a share, compared with a profit of $11.51 million, or 10 cents a share, for the year-earlier period. Revenue rose to $447.22 million from $303.62 million. Adjusted profit was 39 cents a share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters on average were expecting the professional social network to report a profit of 38 cents a share, on revenue of $438 million. For the current quarter, LinkedIn expects revenue of between $455 million and $460 million. Analysts were expecting $470 million. Shares of LinkedIn were down 12% after-hours.

Outerwall shares rise on earnings beat, buyback

(4:37 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Outerwall Inc.'s
OUTR, -13.44%
fourth-quarter earnings topped analyst estimates but revenue was a bit light and the company's outlook fell shy of the Wall Street consensus. The company also announced a $350 million buyback. Outerwall shares rose 8.4% to $69 in after-hours activity. The operator of Redbox movie kiosk and Coinstar change machines forecast core diluted earnings from continuing operations of 77 cents to 97 cents for the first quarter on revenue of $570 million to $600 million, with the yearly outlook at between $5.16 and $5.76 a share on revenue of $2.36 billion and $2.5 billion. Analysts surveyed by FactSet are looking for $1.30 a share on revenue of $607.5 million for the first quarter, and $5.87 a share on revenue of $2.46 billion. For the fourth quarter, Outerwall reported core earnings of $1.68 a share on revenue of $593.7 million. Analysts had forecast $1.25 a share on revenue of $597.1 million.

Expedia shares up 6% on strong earnings

(4:26 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - Expedia, Inc.
EXPE, +12.85%
reported late Thursday its fourth-quarter profit rose to $94.7 million, or 70 cents a share, from $6.7 million, or 5 cents a share, a year ago. Adjusted to exclude one-time items, the online travel agency earned 92 cents a share, up 46% from 63 cents a share a year ago. Revenue for the quarter rose 18% to $1.15 billion from $974.9 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet, citing adjusted earnings, had predicted the company would earn 85 cents a share on $1.14 billion in revenue. Expedia shares were up 6.4% on the report in after-hours trade at $69.27.

LinkedIn buys analytics firm Bright for $120 mln

(4:21 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - LinkedIn Corp.
LNKD, -10.52%
on Thursday said it has agreed to buy Bright, a data insights technology company geared to the jobs market, for roughly $120 million. Bright helps connect job-seekers with prospective employers, the company said. Shares of LinkedIn were down 11% after hours after the company put out a weaker-than-expected forecast.

News Corp. income drops, but beats estimates

(4:20 PM ET) LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- News Corp.
NWS, -0.14%NWSA, -0.47%
said Thursday that second-quarter net income was $150 million, or 26 cents a share, compared with $1.4 billion, or $2.42 a share, for the same period a year ago. Last year's earnings were affected by a $1.3 billion gain from an acquisition. Adjusted earnings were 31 cents a share, well ahead of the 21-cent forecast from analysts polled by FactSet. Sales for the New York-based publishing conglomerate and parent of the Wall Street Journal were $2.24 billion, slightly below last year's $2.32 billion and in line with the FactSet estimate. Shares ended the regular session up 2.6% to $16.02 and jumped another 4.5% to $16.74 in after-hours trades. News Corp. is the parent of MarketWatch, publisher of this report.

Activision turns in better-than-expected earnings

(4:19 PM ET) SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Activision Blizzard Inc.
ATVI, -1.04%
late Thursday reported its fourth-quarter earnings fell to $174 million, or 22 cents a share, from $354 million, or 31 cents a share, a year ago. On an adjusted basis, the publisher of games such as Call of Duty and Skylanders would have earned 79 cents a share. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had forecast quarterly earnings of 73 cents a share. Revenue decreased to $1.52 billion versus $1.77 billion. Activision expects first-quarter adjusted earnings of 9 cents a share versus an average estimate of 10 cents a share. Activision's stock surged 9.5% in after-hours trading.

21st Century Fox's profit falls but tops estimates

(8:26 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - Twenty-First Century Fox Inc.
FOX, +1.39%
reported its fiscal second-quarter profit fell to $1.2 billion, or 53 cents a share, from $2.4 billion, or $1.01 a share, a year earlier. Revenue rose 15% to $8.16 billion from $7.11 billion, the entertainment company said on Thursday. Analysts had expected a profit of 33 cents a share on revenue of $7.95 billion, according to FactSet. The company said its revenue growth was driven by a $605 million rise at its Direct Broadcast Satellite Television segment, primarily related to the inclusion of Sky Deutschland revenue, as well as by a $366 million increase at its Cable Network Programming segment due to continued affiliate revenue gains. The company also said it plans a special meeting of shareholders to get approval for the removal of its full foreign listing from the Australian Securities Exchange. Until last June, Twenty-First Century Fox had been part of the same company as News Corp
NWSA, -0.47%
the parent of MarketWatch. Shares in Twenty-First Century Fox were unchanged in premarket action.

GM shares slide after earnings miss expectations

(8:04 AM ET) NEW YORK (MarketWatch) - General Motors Co.
GM, -1.25%
reported its fourth-quarter profit fell 13% to $1.04 billion, or 57 cents a share, from $1.19 billion, or 54 cents a share, a year earlier. Adjusted per share earnings were 67 cents last quarter, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Revenue rose to $40.5 billion, from $39.3 billion a year earlier, the automotive company said Thursday. Analysts had expected earnings of 88 cents a share on revenue of $40.79 billion, according to FactSet. The automaker said its pension obligations were 80% funded at the end of last year. Shares in GM were down 3.6% in premarket trading.

Sony cuts outlook, now expects annual loss

(1:58 AM ET) LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) -- Sony Corp.(JP:6758)
SNE, -2.64%
posted quarterly earning Thursday, cutting its outlook for the fiscal-year ending in March to a loss of 110 billion yen ($1.1 billion) from a profit of �30 billion, while also confirming it will sell its Vaio personal-computer unit to a Japanese investment fund. For the October-December quarter, the conglomerate posted a �27 billion net profit on �2.41 trillion in revenue, compared to a loss of �10.8 billion on revenue of �1.95 trillion in the same quarter of 2012. Operating profit for the period totaled �90.3 billion, beating a consensus forecast of �71.9 billion, according to Reuters. Sony also plans to cut some 5,000 jobs by the end of the year, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Shares of Sony ended 1.5% higher ahead of the results.

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